A series of (V1-xCrx)(2)O-3 ceramics (x = 0.0035, 0.0053, 0.0060, 0.0083 and 0.0095) have been prepared by a chemical doping route. XRD patterns and the lattice parameters of all samples confirm that Cr(III) enter the V2O3 lattice. The AFM micrographs show that the obtained ceramics have a hierarchical structure: the agglomerates are about 1-2 mu m size consisting of spherical particles with diameters of about 65-85 nm. The result of resistivity measurement reveals that the ceramics with the dopant concentration range (0.0035 < x <= 0.0080) obtained at 1523 K for 45 min possess good PTC properties and their resistivity jump are in the range of 1.0 x 10(2)-7.5 x 10(2). The good PTC effect is attributed to the nano-size grains and the hierarchical structure. It is found that the dopant concentration range is much narrower than that (0.005 < x < 0.018) in (V1-xCrx)(2)O-3 micro-grain ceramics and single-crystals. Crown Copyright (C) 2013 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.